Huawei was never interested in buying Blackberry

Huawei has acknowledged global geopolitical reality, telling a London conference it's not much interested in the growth-by-acquisition model that's so much a staple of Silicon Valley.

According to the current occupant of the Chinese giant's rotating CEO position Eric Xu, the company will be able to run a go-it-alone strategy without venturing into the virtual sale-yards placing bids on high-tech-horseflesh.

In a denial that will be heard around the world in the collective relief-sighs of spooks, the company listed Blackberry as one of the companies Huawei was never interested in buying, Reutersreports.

It's almost certain that any attempt to acquire a major telco kit vendor in the West would either get a flat “no” from the relevant national government, or would at least tie Huawei up in energy-sapping inquiries. So it's no surprise that Xu told the press in London that its focus for growing its roughly $US36 billion would be on in-house R&D.

Xu added that acquiring a competitor would “bring us similar technology to what we already have” without delivering any synergy, and that customers prefer to have a choice between multiple vendors anyway.

He cited a $US600 million investment in 4G technology, and said Huawei devotes 14 per cent of its sales to R&D. ®